In the most typical applications, metal reinforcing eyelets consist of a tubular body with a tubular shank and a flat flange, which is opposed to a washer. The tubular shank is intended to cut, for example, a fabric by making a hole of a size equal to its diameter. The tubular shank is then peened on to the washer that is placed on the other side of the fabric, which is thus pinched between the flange and the washer. Types of reinforcing eyelets also exist in which both elements comprise two respective tubular bodies, capable of being inserted one into the other and reciprocally deformable to fasten the reinforcing eyelet on to the substrate.
Metal reinforcing eyelets have applications on a wide variety of materials. However, their use on fine or delicate fabrics, such as elasticated or thin fabrics, is limited by poor retention of the fabric, which can easily slip out of the grip between the flange and washer. The problem stems from the fact that the two essentially flat portions of the eyelet, i.e. the flange of the tubular body and the washer that it opposed to it, are generally two thin metal plates between which it is difficult to grip a thin fabric well without damaging it or without creating wrinkles or creases that are unacceptable from an aesthetic point of view.
To solve this problem, it has been thought to interpose, between the fabric and one of the two flat portions of the eye, a felt or rubber disc that improves the friction between the fabric and the reinforcing eyelet. However, this solution is not entirely satisfactory from an aesthetic point of view, because the disc is visible and this reduces the desirability and value of the metal reinforcing eyelet. For this same reason, no consideration is given to the alternative of eyelets made from plastic material, since this is clearly of little interest and rarely used on valuable garments and products of a certain level.